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Forum Rules

AUSRC.COM Rules

GENERAL RULES

AUSRC.COM, while it is hosted in the public domain, is a private community forum for like-minded individuals with an interest in RC (Radio / Remote Controlled). The way in which you behave and interact with other members of the community should be consistent with the kind of behaviour you would expect and appreciate at your club or in your workplace.

As AUSRC.COM is a private community, membership to AUSRC.COM is not guaranteed or to be expected.

The rules of AUSRC.COM have been developed to foster a pleasant environment for it's members. There are two fundamental principals that are therefore required form all AUSRC.COM members.

Respect for others who share our interests and as such have become members of our community.

Ownership for our actions, behaviour and conduct. All members must accept personal responsibility for the way they interact with each other.

Appropriateness of Content

No foul or abusive language. This includes swearing, language generally considered offensive and comments that others would typically feel confronted by.

No personal attacks. Not all members will agree on every topic and differences of opinion are part of what makes the information on AUSRC.COM valuable. The degeneration of these discussions into personal attacks is not tolerated on AUSRC.COM.

Be polite and patient. At one time or another we were new to this hobby, so please be kind to other new people in this forum and hobby. If you are new to the hobby, please be patient when asking questions. Members are not available 24/7 so some questions may take longer than others to be answered.

No racial or derogatory comments. Comments relating to race, gender, ethic background, religion or cultural differences have no place on AUSRC.COM. Posts will be removed and members will be disciplined accordingly should this occur.

No sexual references. Porn or other adult material is not permitted on AUSRC.COM. Given the nature of our community, we have a large range of both children and adults viewing the content.

Personal Information

Do not post personal information (i.e. addresses, phone numbers, passwords, personal identification numbers, images) or any other information considered private. Remember that this information is in the public domain.

Do not distribute personal information of others without first obtaining the express permission of the individual.

Spam

Minimise short posts, as these posts typically do not add value to the current discussion.

No double posting.

Ensure posts have a purpose. If your post does not add value to discussion, don't post.

No "smilies" only posts.

Moderating / Administration of Content

Threads can be edited or deleted by Moderators and Administrators at any time that they feel a breach of rules has occurred.

The original poster "may" be notified when their post is moderated. Time is a precious commodity and this will not always be possible.

Ownership of forum content

The website and associated forum is the property of AUSRC.COM. No material may be taken or duplicated in part or full without prior consent of the owner of AUSRC.COM.

Copyright

Members are asked to respect the copyright of other users, sites, media, etc. Users linking to, or asking for, information on warez, crackz, etc., re-printing, quoting or reproducing material without permission will receive a warning and their post will be removed.

ETIQUETTE

The over-riding factor when it comes to forum etiquette is common sense. Just because you may not have seen something explicitly stated in the rules, if in doubt, don't. Wikipedia also provides an excellent definition of "Netiquette"

All posts are to be written in English

Members should post in well constructed sentences which are consistent with "normal writing" or socially acceptable conversation. That is, users should not post in abbreviated or alphanumerical "txt/sms" syntax, use excessive numbers of emoticons, large, small or coloured text, etc. Similarly users should not SHOUT (continuously capitalised text) or use inappropriate or offensive language, excessive punctuation (e.g. ! and ?) in topic titles or posts.

Thread titles should be specific

Threads should be placed in the correct forum. Members are expected to have read the forum descriptions before posting.

No cross posting

If a member is in doubt about the most appropriate forum for for a thread to be posted in, they should make a decision and post it once. If there is a better location, the moderating team will move it. Do not post the same thread in multiple forums.

Use good grammar and spelling

Search and "Similar Threads"

At the time of writing, AUSRC.COM has 7 years worth of information held within it's knowledge base, contained in 20,000 threads with nearly 300,000 posts. Before posting new threads, use the search function to ensure there are no existing threads that cover the topic. Additionally, at the bottom of every thread you read, are suggestions on similar threads.

USER ACCOUNTS

A members user account is their identity with the community. It is therefore important that the following guidelines are adhered to.

Single user account per member

All members are allowed one (1) user account. There is no legitimate reason for a member to have more than one user account. History has shown that members with multiple accounts have created them to cause trouble and hide behind false identities.

Immediate ban for multiple accounts. As soon as a duplicate account has been identified, it will be deleted. The member's primary account will then be suspended until they show cause as to why their primary account should not also be banned.

Exceptions

Moderator and Admin Team - The Moderator and Admin Team members are permitted unlimited accounts for the purposes of testing. They must identify the additional accounts by placing their primary member name in the signature block of the alternate accounts.

Sponsors - Upon approval from the Moderator and Admin Team, 1 additional user account can be created by the Sponsor for use as the official user account for that Sponsor. This allows their primary account to be used as a personal user account.

Clubs - Upon approval from the Moderator and Admin Team, 1 additional user account can be created by the Club for use as the official user account for that Club. This allows their primary account to be used as a personal user account.

Closing of user accounts

User accounts are never deleted. To maintain the integrity of the forum, threads and posts, user accounts can be closed or suspended, but never deleted.

User accounts can be closed on request if an AUSRC.COM member no longer wishes to participate in the community. They can make this request to the Moderator and Admin Team.

SIGNATURES AND AVATARS

Signatures

Signature privileges and features are based on user membership or subscription status and include limits for the number of characters, images and links accordingly. All images, text and links in signatures are subject the the same rules about advertising and suitability as any other content on the boards contributed by members.

Where images are permitted in the signature block, the signature must be no larger than 600 pixels x 150 pixels. Members with signature images larger than this will be notified that their signature will need to be resized. If the signature image is not resized within 7 days of notification, it will be removed.

Externally linked content may be commercial in nature but must comply with the standard board rules on advertising and appropriate content. Links are included in signature size limits.

Please note that posting business names or links in signatures for businesses directly related to the RC market, but not current AUSRC.COM Sponsors, is not permitted, consistent with the rules on advertising. As a member's signature appears under every post it contributes to the content in that post. Non-Sponsor commercial entities listed in signatures therefore are being posted with every post and cannot be construed as innocent-links or market intelligence.

Avatars

Avatars are an essential, personal addition to your unique online identity. They do, however consume bandwidth and processor power relative to their complexity, size and whether they are animated or static. Therefore the size and type of avatars is limited by level of membership or subscription. Avatars are to be no larger than 100 pixels x 100 pixels.

Avatars are subject to the same conditions as all other content with respect to commercial context and suitability.

SELLING

AUSRC.COM require that if you want to place an advertisement for an item for sale that a few conditions must be met.

Conditions of Sale

The sale must be a private sale and not a commercial or money making venture.

You must have contributed more than 40 worthwhile posts to the forum.

The item must be advertised for a given price.

The item must be available for the member to purchase.

eBay

If the item is on eBay, then you will be able to post a link to the eBay listing providing the above conditions are met. This typically means that you must put a price in your post and be willing to end the eBay auction early for one of our members if they agree to buy your item at the advertised price. A link to an eBay auction will not be permitted in the For Sale area if the item price is not listed.

"For Sale" Listing Requirements

To facilitate the smooth sale of your item, as a seller you are required to provide the following information as a minimum:

Price - fairly self explanatory.

Location - where the item located.

Description - a comprehensive description of the item.

Pictures - a picture speaks a thousand words. While this will not always be required, it is a great idea. Please ensure pictures are local to the thread and not linked to external forums or websites. (ie. everything to sell the item should be contained in the thread)

Moderation

The For Sale area is a moderated part of the forum. This means that your new thread must be manually approved by a Moderator before it will be visible. This may take up to 24 hours.

Buying and Selling is Strictly Between Members

AUSRC.COM is not responsible for the successful completion of transactions between members. AUSRC.COM is purely the advertising medium utilised to introduce buyers to sellers, much like the Trading Post. While AUSRC.COM will provide assistance in relation to contacting members where transactions have not been completed, this is the limit of assistance that can be provided.

AUSRC.COM can not be held responsible for the lost of goods or money as a result of a sale or purchase facilitated via the site.

Selling on Behalf of Others

Selling items on behalf of others, particularly non-Members of AUSRC.COM, is only acceptable if the following conditions are met:

The member listing the item meets all required selling criteria.

The member listing the item takes FULL and COMPLETE responsibility for the sale. They must handle all correspondence, and oversee the successful completion of any transaction.

In the event that the transactions does not complete successfully, any feedback related to the sale (iTrader or otherwise) will go against the listing member.

iTrader System

We encourage all members that have bought or sold goods through the forum to utilise the iTrader System. This system utilises feedback similar to the eBay system and will assist other members when making decisions about who they should be trading with. When providing feedback regarding a member, it is a requirement to submit the URL that references the "For Sale" thread.

ADVERTISING AND COMMERCIAL CONTENT

Definitions

"Advertising" is the paid promotion of goods, services, companies and ideas by an identified sponsor. Marketers see advertising as part of an overall promotional strategy. Other components of the promotional mix include publicity, public relations, personal selling and sales promotion.

"Sponsors" are any organisation with a arrangement in place that secures an advertising campaign on AUSRC.COM.

"Informational Links and Content" relates to content and links to external sites that are posted independently of the originating organisation and in the context of the genuine provision of information. This could be done as a direct answer to a question, or as part of a reasonable discussion relating to the thread topic. Informational Links and Content may be posted and deemed not to be a breach of the advertising regulations.

Advertising on AUSRC.COM

Advertising on AUSRC.COM is permitted only with the express permission of the AUSRC.COM Moderator and Admin Team. AUSRC.COM Sponsors may advertise or promote their organisation, products and services anywhere on AUSRC.COM.

Any content on the site that is deemed to be advertising without permission will be removed immediately.

Content is not deemed to be advertising if it is not initiated or commenced by, or on behalf of, an affiliated organisation or party. Such content will be tested according to this policy and in such a case deemed "informational links and content". The systemic or regular posting of "informational links and content" by a single member, or related to a single organisation, will be deemed as advertising by proxy and will be removed.

Please keep in mind, AUSRC.COM is a discussion forum with an advertising context not an advertising forum with a discussion context. It is stressed to all Sponsors, both existing and potential, that AUSRC.COM exists as a discussion forum in which the reasonable free expression of content pertaining to the RC hobby is expected and encouraged. Such content is necessary for the relevance and credibility of the site. Therefore, the rules exempting "informational links and content" from of the advertising rules, are expected to serve in cases where genuine market intelligence, research, facts and assertions from the wider market place are relevant to the discussions. AUSRC.COM Sponsors are also reminded that the advertising and promotional opportunity presented to them in sponsoring the community does not entitle them to demand that be suppressed, censored or otherwise interpreted simply because of a conflict to their commercial interests.

As a courtesy to our Sponsors, "informational links and content" should NOT be posted at all within the Sponsors own forum. Remember, Sponsors have moderation rights to their own forums and may remove any such content if they deem it unsuitable.

It is understood that Members, RC Clubs, or Events within the community will often be sponsored by manufacturers, wholesalers or Hobby Stores. These entities will often not be associated with AUSRC.COM, and therefore their inclusion in relevant threads and posts will often be in conflict with the "Advertising and Commercial Content" rules. Given that the AUSRC.COM community is built on information, and the common enjoyment of the RC Hobby, the following provisions have been made to help foster these relationships.

It is important to understand that the intent of these provisions is to ACKNOWLEDGE the entity's support of the community and NOT to offer an advertising channel by proxy. If members keep this in mind, Moderator intervention will be minimised.

The entity's names, and reasonable use of their logo, may be included in threads and posts relating to the Member, Club or Event that they are sponsoring. Links to the entity's business are still not permitted.

If the entity is new to AUSRC.COM, they may be introduced in the "Hobby and R/C Shops" forum. This allows for an initial link to their business and other contact details to be provided.

The Moderating and Admin Team will monitor the inclusion of these entities, and notify members if they feel it is moving beyond the intent of this provision.

Additionally, members are permitted to included these entities in their signature block providing they comply with the above provision.

Small Vendors

For an individual that might provide a service or make a limited number of items as a hobby, they may enter into a "Small Vendor" arrangement with AUSRC.COM. This arrangement allows them to have a single (or limited number of) thread(s) in the "Advertisers" forum, for a set duration of time. Within this thread, and ONLY within this thread, they can market their items to the AUSRC.COM Community. There is a nominal fee associated with becoming a "Small Vendor" and interested members should contact the AUSRC Moderating and Admin Team.

MEMBER INFRACTIONS

Members found in breach of the forum rules will be issued with an infraction. These infractions will have a points value and an expiry date. Any member who reaches 50 infraction points will be banned, until the points they have accumulated expire such that their total points fall below 50. Additionally, members privileges such as PM access, posting of links, posting of images, etc, may get restricted as their infraction points increase. Reasons for, and severity of, infractions are currently set as follows:

Continued posting of commercial links or content

5 points

Points expire in 1 Month(s)

Forum spamming

5 points

Points expire in 1 Month(s)

Inappropriate language or content

5 points

Points expire in 1 Month(s)

Significant rule violation

5 points

Points expire in 1 Month(s)

Insulting another member(s) - personal attacks

5 points

Points expire in 1 Month(s)

Continued inappropriate behaviour

15 points

Points expire in 3 Month(s)

Major breach of forum rules

15 points

Points expire in 3 Month(s)

Threatening behaviour towards another member

25 points

Points expire in 6 Month(s)

Moderator discretion - Immediate Ban - 1 Week

50 points

Points expire in 7 Day(s)

Moderator discretion - Immediate Ban - 2 Weeks

50 points

Points expire in 14 Day(s)

Moderator discretion - Immediate Ban - 4 Weeks

50 points

Points expire in 28 Day(s)

Moderator discretion - Immediate Ban - Permanent

50 points

Permanent

Should a member disagree with an infraction, they can approach any member of the Moderating Team for a review, or ultimately they can take the matter up with AUSRC. Moderator discretion for immediate banning will be used where members have gone well beyond the limits of the forum rules, are repeat offenders or have failed to follow the directions of the Moderating and Admin team after multiple requests. Ultimately, the results of any review undertaken by the Moderating and Admin Team will be final, and no further correspondence will be entered into.